Yea sorry for not uploading in like a month, I don't really know what happened tbh
Sumeru was filled with beige. It's not a color commonly associated with the land of plants and wisdom, but it's a common color all the same. Namely, in the marketplace.
Buildings accented with green and red and the rest of the rainbow still stayed true to a base of neutral tans and browns.
It reminded Collei of her time in Mondstast, with a similar pattern of red-tiled roofs atop cream buildings surrounded by stone gray walls, but that's where the similarities ended. Not just in terms of the architecture, but mostly the heat.
Mondstast worshipped the god of wind, meaning that the citizens were always hugged by a cool breeze when the heat pressed down on them. Sumeru, on the other hand, suffocated you in an oppressive warmth that left you sluggish, sweaty, and out of breath.
Collei shook her head, trying to recall what else she needed. Tighnari sent her to grab a few supplies the rangers were running low on. Another heat wave had swept over Sumeru, and as such they were short staffed with many succumbing to it.
"See anything you like?" a high-pitched voice shattered Collei's thoughts, snapping her back to reality. She blinked, taking in the marketplace surrounding her before her eyes searched for the source of the voice.
Looking down, she saw a girl, smiling sweetly—too sweetly—up at her. She had bright pink hair complimented by lavender clothes. Behind her stood a cart full of trinkets.
Collei's violet eyes wandered, trying to spot anything the rangers needed. They stopped, however, at a couple of bracelets. They were simple, woven in shades of one singular color, but to her they were truly magnificent.
Could she… no. Tighnari asked her to do a favor for him. She couldn't let him down, not after all of the kindness he had shown her, despite her reasons for being in Sumeru.
"Oooh," the girl cooed, seeing her eyes frozen on the bracelets. "Those are one of a kind! Hard to find, harder not to sell! You interested?"
Collei slowly shook her head, swallowing her disappointment. "Sorry, I don't need anything you're offering… maybe some other time."
The girl placed her hands on her hips and scoffed. "Sure, you might not need them, but it doesn't matter whether or not you need them. If you want them, get them! You deserve to treat yourself once in a while."
"I-I do?" she stuttered. Sure, normal people spend money on things they like, but what about her life is normal? What about her life allows her to spend money—money she was given to spend on necessities no less—on something she can live without, now matter how much she may like them?
The girl's eyes softened, so barely noticeable that Collei wondered if she imagined it.
"Of course. Tell you what, how many do you want? I'll only charge you half the price."
Collei blinked, then rapidly shook her head, hands waving in front of her. "No! I couldn't possibly… don't you need the money? I'll pay full price."
The girl tutted, shaking her head. "Nope, if you want to make it up to me, you can buy from me next time you see me. Now, how many do you want?"
Collei paused, her mind racing. Many people have helped her start over. She hasn't been able to let go of her past yet, but… perhaps these bracelets can help her start.
"I'll take five—and the fifth one I'm paying full price for. Also… what's your name?"
The girl smiled. "Deal! And the name's Dori."
Dori handed her the bracelets, and Collei carefully put one of the green ones on, placing three in her bag. Then, she handed Dori the purple one.
"My name is Collei, and consider this a thank you."
"Collei, what are you doing?"
Collei looked up from the letter she was currently writing to Amber.
Tighnari stood in the doorway of the Avidya Forest Rangers' headquarters. She assumed he's finally returned from patrol.
She set her letter aside, grabbing the canteen she'd saved for him and giving it to him.
He took it gratefully as her hands moved behind her back. "I bought everything I could find at the market, but I couldn't find any quality canteens."
Tighnari shrugged, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. "It's fine. We can try again tomorrow."
Collei nodded before nervously producing a green bracelet. It was identical to hers, except while hers was a dull green, similar to her hair, Tighnari's was brighter, with the slightest hint of blue, turning it into an almost saturated mint.
"What's this?"
"I-I found a merchant at the market." Tighnari's eyes widened, and Collei felt herself flinch back. "She offered me a deal! Half off, and the bracelets looked pretty and… I thought I could buy a couple as gifts."
Tighnari tilted his head, ears twitching. "You bought bracelets from Dori, and you got a discount?"
"I just wanted to thank you! You and so many others have helped me get here, and I thought maybe they could be like friendship bracelets… wait, how did you know it was Dori?"
Tighnari placed a hand on his forehead and groaned. "Nevermind, that's not important. But," he gently took the bracelet from her hands and fastened it around his wrist. "Thank you, for this. It means a lot to me, and I'm sure it'll mean a lot to whoever else receives one."
Collei smiled brightly and, overcome by a feeling swirling happily inside her, she wrapped her arms around Tighnari.
He awkwardly hugged her back, and as Collei melted into the embrace, she couldn't help but marvel at just how lucky she had gotten.
I hate how AO3 included the "- character" that they added to the tag when making it official